Third Party

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Lore & Background

The narrative is framed by events on 17 March 2004. After being shot by corrupt GIGN officer Albert Fournier during a mission in Paris for the International Contracts Agency (ICA), Agent 47 retreats to his hotel room. As tear gas fills the space and GIGN officers prepare to storm in, 47 reflects on his history. He recalls escaping the asylum after killing Dr. Otto Ort-Meyer and executing various contracts: assassinating a cannibalistic serial killer and his associate in Bucharest, killing a black marketeer and his associates in Kamchatka, eliminating a corrupt nobleman and son in England, taking out a biker crime lord in Rotterdam, and murdering all four of his genetic fathers—Arkadij Jegorov, Frantz Fuchs, Lee Hong, and Pablo Belisario Ochoa—alongside Ort-Meyer. An ICA doctor performs emergency surgery but flees when GIGN arrives, leaving 47 to survive alone until he escapes the hotel to kill Fournier.

In Their Own Story

Following his escape from the Paris hotel, Agent 47 reaches the streets and locates Albert Fournier, eliminating him before fleeing to Charles de Gaulle Airport. Boarding a departing plane, 47 reunites with handler Diana Burnwood. She confirms that someone tipped off Fournier about the contract and warns that the ICA is being targeted by a group known as the Franchise. This enemy seeks to undermine the agency and gain control of governments worldwide. The mission briefing reveals that 47 had been sent to eliminate three targets involved in a child prostitution ring in Eastern Europe; while he killed two, Fournier survived due to the tip-off. Armed with this intel and a file naming the Franchise, 47 agrees to handle the matter, turning his survival instinct into a mission against a global conspiracy.

Reader's Guide

In Hitman: Contracts, players control Agent 47 from a third-person perspective, utilizing a context-sensitive action system where one button performs multiple functions like peeking through keyholes or dragging bodies. Stealth is encouraged but optional; players can engage in violent gunfights using weapons ranging from kitchen knives to belt-fed machine guns. Performance is rated by shots fired, NPCs killed (distinguishing between innocents and adversaries), and guard alerts. The lowest rank, 'Mass Murderer,' results from indiscriminate killing, while the highest, 'Silent Assassin,' requires completing missions without detection or unnecessary deaths. A 'Suspicion Meter' tracks cover integrity; running indoors, brandishing weapons, or sneaking raises suspicion. Disguises can be acquired from male NPCs but may fail if the player lacks matching equipment (e.g., a shotgun) or performs suspicious actions like lock-picking.

Did You Know?

• The game features several new missions that serve as flashbacks experienced by Agent 47 while recovering from a gunshot wound in Paris.
• Hitman: Contracts was developed on a tight schedule with IO Interactive splitting into two teams to work on it and Hitman: Blood Money simultaneously.
• The soundtrack, composed by Jesper Kyd, was nominated for the 'Best Original Music' award at the 2005 BAFTA Games Awards but did not win.
• Specific licensed songs appear in levels, including Paul Anka's 'Put Your Head on My Shoulder' in Level 2 and Clutch's 'Immortal' in Level 5.
• The game includes a flashback mission where Agent 47 kills all four of his genetic fathers: Arkadij Jegorov, Frantz Fuchs, Lee Hong, and Pablo Belisario Ochoa.